Deadly Desire
by labgeekluvr
Summary: Ryan learns the hard way that whatever Erica wants, Erica gets.Disclaimer: The character of Toby Hansen in chapter two is my own, all the rest are property of the writers at CBS and CSI:Miami
1. Chapter 1

DEADLY DESIRE

Ryan Wolfe woke up groggy in Erica Sikes' bed, dressed in only his boxers. He looked around and she was nowhere to be found. He looked at the clock, it read 10:00 AM. Lucky for him it was his day off, as far as he knew anyway. He wasn't sure how much time he lost, or what exactly transpired that led him to be out of his clothes and in Erica's bed.

He remembered agreeing to meet her for dinner at her place, and he thought that it was an actual date. She was annoying, downright frustrating at times, but she was pretty, and for some strange reason he felt himself attracted to her. But midway through dinner it became clear she was using him once again to get information for a story. He was set to leave when suddenly he felt dizzy. He vaguely remembered Erica leading him to her bedroom, removing his jacket, shoes, and belt to make him more comfortable as he lay down. The rest of what happened he swore was a strange dream–images of Erica removing the rest of his clothing, kissing and touching him, doing things to him he'd never imagine her doing. Maybe it wasn't a dream, and the evening had in fact taken a strange and twisted turn. "I can't believe she slipped me a mickey just to get me into bed. It would be a whole lot easier if she'd just asked, and didn't try to pump me for information first," he thought.

He splashed some water on his face, got dressed, and headed downstairs, determined to confront Erica. He called her name but got no response. "Maybe she's gone into work," he said to himself. He tried to reach her at the station and on her cell, but got her voicemail on both attempts. As he shuffled into the kitchen, shaking his head to clear any remaining cobwebs, a small red pool on the floor caught his attention and caused his stomach to drop. He reached for his cell phone. "H, it's Wolfe. I've got a problem."

Calleigh and Delko arrived to process the scene. Ryan was both relieved and embarrassed to see them. Delko searched around the perimeter for clues that would shed light on Erica's disappearance–footprints, broken glass–nothing would be found. Calleigh processed the inside of the house, which included processing Ryan himself. She took samples from under his fingernails, took a blood sample to run a tox screen, then handed him a swab. "You said she might have...taken advantage of you while you were out. There might be trace on you–lipstick, saliva. Go in to the restroom, leave the door open a crack. I promise I won't peek, okay? Nothing will be said," she whispered, touching his shoulder. He sighed, lowered his gaze, his face flushing. Tears of humiliation began to well in his green eyes. Calleigh lightly touched his cheek. "Go on now," she said gently. He nodded and made his way to the restroom. A couple minutes he returned with the swab. "There was lipstick, plain as day," he said haltingly. "I'd really like to go home and take a shower".

"We're almost done here. Why don't you go outside and talk to Tripp and Horatio, answer any questions they might have. I'm sure once you've done that they'll let you go home," she said, patting his shoulder again.

"Yeah, I'll do that," he said. He turned to head out the door, but stopped and turned back towards Calleigh. He kept his gaze on the floor, his humiliation preventing him from meeting her compassionate gaze.

"Thanks, Cal," he whispered.

"Hang in there, Ryan. We'll find out what happened," she said reassuringly.

Ryan walked out, passing Delko who was coming in. He looked at Calleigh, trying not to smirk.

"Knock it off, Delko," Calleigh said, "he's a co-worker."

"And right now he's a suspect, and it's not looking good. Found this outside." He said, handing Calleigh a plastic bag. Inside the bag was a knife with blood on the blade and a bloody fingerprint on the handle.

"Ryan had no cuts on his hands. We know that fingerprints can be lifted and transferred,"Calleigh said.

"You're awful quick to defend him. C'mon, Cal. Anyone of us would be glad to get rid of that reporter chick. I just didn't think Ryan would be capable of this."

"We're nowhere near making that conclusion yet. Don't forget how calculating and manipulative Erica is. She assaulted him. Plus there's not enough blood here to indicate she was murdered. Until we find her dead body, there's no evidence that a murder even took place," Calleigh said firmly.

Calleigh packed up the evidence and her kit and headed out to her vehicle. Horatio strolled over to her, removed his sunglasses, and lowered his head to meet her gaze.

"Ma'am, what have you got?" He asked.

"It doesn't look good. I've got possible trace evidence that sexual activity took place, against Ryan's will. I'm sending blood and wine samples back to the lab to run a tox screen. Delko found a weapon with blood and a print on it. We'll run it through the system."

"Well, move fast, because if Ryan is arrested, we'll lose a good CSI," Horatio said, putting back on his sunglasses and walking away.

Horatio managed to persuade Stetler to give the lab 24 hours to eliminate Ryan as a suspect before an arrest would be made. Ryan went home, took a shower, placed the clothes he had worn the night before into a paper bag to give to Calleigh for evidence. He passed the DNA lab on the way to find Calleigh. Valera had the results from Calleigh's processing–nothing under Ryan's fingernails, but positive DNA from Erica's saliva and a mixture of saliva and seminal fluid from the bed sheets.

"Ryan," Valera called out. Ryan froze, he hoped she wouldn't ask him about what happened. He ducked his head into the lab.

"Hi, Max," he said.

"I've got the DNA results..."

"Great, I'm just heading over to see Calleigh now, I can take them to her," he interrupted, not wanting to discuss the results.

"Are you okay? I mean, it's kinda disturbing." she whispered.

"Thanks for asking, but I'd rather not talk about it. See you later." He replied, ducking out of the lab and quickly making his way to find Calleigh.

"Hey, Ryan," Calleigh said, giving him a faint smile. "Thanks for bringing this in. Oh, you've got the DNA results too. Good, saves me a trip."

"Yeah, Valera handed them to me as I was walking down the hall, I didn't look at it though."

"It just shows that sexual activity went on, nothing more."

"As if that weren't enough..."

"Ryan..."

"Hey, did anyone check to see if they could run G.P.S. on her vehicle or see if she's used her cell phone lately?" Ryan asked, changing the subject.

"Delko's running that now. We should have results soon."

"Good, good," Ryan said softly. "I need to go see H. about something. I'll check back a little later."

"Okay Ryan, keep your chin up."

Ryan actually managed to look at Calleigh and give her a slight grin. He made his way to Horatio's office.

"Mr. Wolfe. Seems like you've had an interesting night."

"More interesting than I'd like to admit. I guess you'd better hang on to these for a while," Ryan said, handing his badge and gun to his boss.

"Thank you Mr. Wolfe. I trust I won't need to keep these permanently."

"I didn't hurt her, H. You gotta believe me."

"Son, I know from experience that things are not always what they seem. We'll find out the truth about what happened to Miss Sikes. In the meantime, just lay low and let us get to work, okay?"

Ryan nodded and he and Horatio headed over to Calleigh and Delko.

"Eric, what have you got for me?" Horatio asked.

"I located Erica's vehicle traveling north on I-95. I called dispatch to send a couple units in that direction."

"Let's go," Horatio said.

Erica Sikes was brought into police custody and was sitting in the interrogation room. Horatio and Ryan entered. Erica looked at Ryan with a smug look of contempt. Ryan just shook his head in disbelief at her.

"Miss Sikes," Horatio began, "you've been quite busy–assaulting an officer, faking your own death and attempting to implicate Mr. Wolfe in your disappearance."

"That's quite a charge," Erica replied.

"What did you do to your hand, miss?" Horatio asked.

"Cut it on a broken glass."

"Try again, we found no broken glass at the scene," Ryan fumed.

"Easy, Mr. Wolfe, easy. Here's my theory. You invited Mr. Wolfe to your residence for dinner under the guise that it was a social occasion. When he refused to give you the information you needed for your story, you spiked his drink with GhB, sexually assaulted him, leaving DNA evidence on the bed sheets. Then, you took a knife from the kitchen and sliced your own hand with it. You lifted Ryan's fingerprint from the wine glass and planted it on the knife. Then when you were sure that Ryan was unconscious you left the scene, planting the knife outside where Officer Delko would find it. Am I close?" Horatio asked.

"Try proving it in court,"

"We have your fingerprints on the knife and the wine glass."

"It's my house, my prints are everywhere."

"We also know that you were privy to details from the Walter Dresden case, and used that information to lift Ryan's prints from the wine glass and place them on the knife," Horatio said.

Erica lowered her head.

"Why? How could you do this to me? Were you so ticked that I wouldn't give you your breaking news story that you felt it necessary to not only humiliate me, but possibly send me to jail? Run the risk of me losing my job? What did I do to you to make you want to

ruin my life?" Ryan asked furiously.

"You needed to learn that when I want something, I'll stop at nothing to get it. I got you, and now I'll get my big news story," Erica smiled menacingly.

Ryan started to tremble.

"Mr Wolfe..."

"H, I need to get out of here."

"No need, Mr. Wolfe. She's outta here. Officers, arrest this woman." Horatio said. Once Erica had been led away, Horatio put his hand on Ryan's shoulder and handed him back his badge.

"I told you I wouldn't need this for long," he said. "Take the day off tomorrow, get some rest."

"Thanks, H." Ryan said. Ryan walked out of the interrogation room and found Calleigh. "It's over," he said. "They've arrested Erica. I still can't believe what she did."

Tears welled up in his green eyes again. Calleigh walked over to him and reached for him. He hesitated at first, not sure he wanted anyone to touch him. But instinct told him Calleigh wouldn't hurt him the way Erica had. He stepped toward her and allowed her to wrap her arms around him. He buried his face in her soft blond hair and sobbed as she rocked him slowly.

"I'm so sorry, baby," she whispered. "That woman will never hurt you again."


	2. Chapter 2

Deadly Desire, Chapter Two

Ryan and Calleigh entered Ryan's apartment after picking up some takeout and a bottle of wine. Ryan picked up his mail and set it on the counter. In the pile was a large manilla envelope. After he and Calleigh enjoyed their dinner, Ryan started to sort through his mail. He picked up the large manilla envelope.

"Calleigh, what do you make of this?" he asked her. "There's no return address on it."

She took it from his hands to try and feel what was inside. "Feels like there's some sort of a disk inside, like a DVD", she said. Ryan carefully opened the envelope to find that Calleigh was right. There was an unmarked DVD in a plastic envelope, along with a smaller manilla envelope, also unmarked. He set the envelope down on the counter and placed the DVD into his DVD player. Calleigh and Ryan watched in horror as Ryan's encounter with Erica played on the screen in lurid detail.

"Turn it off!" Ryan shouted, thirty seconds into the film. Calleigh grabbed a remote and shut off the DVD as Ryan stormed over to the counter to see what was left in the envelope. Ryan opened the smaller envelope to find a letter accompanied by several pictures of himself compromised by Erica. Calleigh walked over to him as his hands began to shake. She touched him on the shoulder and took the pictures and the letter from him.

"Wh-what does it say?" Ryan stuttered.

Calleigh continued to rub his shoulder as she read the letter to him. "_Enclosed you will find a disk and some pictures that should be of interest to you. Should you wish to keep these out of public view, a payment of $50,000 is required. If you go to the police, or any of your colleagues at the crime lab, the pictures and the video will go public. Payment should be in cash, delivered to PO Box 943 at the post office nearest to the crime lab by noon tomorrow_." She paused for a moment. "Ryan, she's blackmailing you from her jail cell."

"It's her bail money I'll bet. Why does she need me? I'm sure she could come up with $50,000. Or that someone at the station could," Ryan said.

"It's all part of her plan to destroy you. This is her big news story. She's looking to embroil you in a sex scandal that you wanted no part of," Calleigh said.

"I think I'm going to be sick," Ryan whispered, rushing towards the rest room. Calleigh followed him, stopping to grab a washcloth and handtowel out of the closet. She ran the washcloth under cool water. When Ryan had finished being sick, Calleigh knelt down beside him and gently washed his face with the cool washcloth. She handed him the towel, but he didn't want it. He lowered the toilet lid and leaned his head and arms against it, sobbing. Calleigh ran her fingers through his hair, trying to soothe him.

"Ryan, let me take the disk and photos with me. I can process them for fingerprints," she whispered.

Ryan's head shot up quickly. "No!" he cried. "If you do that, they'll go public with this. I'll be finished. I'll lose my job, may even go to jail."

"No you won't. She doesn't know I'm here tonight, nobody knows I'm here. I can take the evidence with me to the lab and process it first thing in the morning," Calleigh whispered, stroking his face.

"I don't want Cooper to see this. I don't want anyone to see this," Ryan sobbed. Calleigh reached for him and wrapped her arms around him.

"I know, Baby, I know. But how else are we going to help you? I promise that I will make sure this is treated with the same discretion and respect that every case is," Calleigh whispered.

"How could this happen? She's in jail. I don't remember seeing a camera or anyone else in the house that night," Ryan said.

"She probably had a camera hidden in the closet, probably borrowed it from her camera man. I'll have Delko go back to the house to see if they can find evidence of a camera," Calleigh answered.

"Don't you think that's too risky? What if someone sees Delko snooping around and notifies the blackmailer?" Ryan asked.

"It's still a crime scene. They're still gathering evidence from the initial incident. Now we need to look for evidence of how she's still trying to ruin your life. Don't worry, we'll do our best to protect you Ryan," Calleigh said, putting her hand on his cheek.

"I'm not used to needing to be protected. I'm used to protecting others. That's why I became a cop in the first place. I just feel so helpless," Ryan sighed.

Calleigh brushed Ryan's bangs from his forehead. "We all feel that way at times. I know it's hard when things are out of your control. But things will get better, I promise," she said, kissing him softly. She took his hand and led him back to the couch and covered him with a blanket. She sat beside him and stroked his hair and his face until he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

The next morning Calleigh went to Horatio's office to explain the situation.

"We don't have much time," Horatio said. "Get Delko over to Erica Sikes' place quickly to see what he can find. I'll take the photos and the letter, you take the disk over to Cooper in AV."

Calleigh went to AV as Horatio instructed, while he took the photos and the letter to analyze for fingerprints. The fingerprints he found on the photos belonged to a Toby Hansen, a photographer who had been arrested previously on an assault charge.

Delko went back to the crime scene and examined the closet. He didn't find a camera but he did see three marks in the carpet that indicated there was a tripod standing there. As he finished his perusal of the crime scene, he noticed somebody snooping around outside the bedroom window. He notified the cops standing outside of the intruder over the radio and they apprehended him. He was brought back to the station, where it was revealed he was none other than Toby Hansen himself.

"Mr. Hansen," Horatio said, "you've been rather careless. You left your fingerprints all over the photographs and the disk that were sent to Mr. Ryan Wolfe. Not only that, but my CSI catches you returning to the crime scene to retrieve your camera. What is your connection to Miss Erica Sikes?"

"I'm her camera man. We work together," Hansen answered.

"Is your relationship strictly personal, or did she offer you some incentive if you did her this little favor?" Horatio asked.

"She offered me money, said she would split the $50,000 with me, and that maybe things between us might heat up once she got out," Hansen stammered.

"What made her think she was getting out? We have a solid case against her, not only for the assault, but now for extortion. And you, sir, are her accomplice," Horatio said.

"She thought maybe she could intimidate the guy into dropping the charges if she blackmailed him," Hansen said.

"That's not gonna happen. In case you haven't heard, this is Miami, and we never close. Gentlemen, take him outta here," Horatio said.

"She's not done yet," Hansen threatened. "You don't know where she's got the master copies. She could unleash that video over the internet at any time."

"I find that unlikely. And even if she did, we'd make sure the damage is minimal. So, no worries, my friend," Horatio smiled.

The cops led Hansen away. Horatio called Delko and ordered him to search Erica's house and place of employment. for any addition copies of photographs or disks. He also called in a favor to the county jail to have Erica's access to the internet monitored severely. Delko arrived at the news station just in the nick of time to stop Erica's secretary from posting the video on the web. She also had the photographs in her possession. She was apprehended along with the computer and the materials she possessed. Upon questioning it was learned that the secretary was promised money and a possible promotion if she did this favor for Erica. The secretary said that as far as she knew, the copies she possessed were the only ones other than those sent to Ryan. After she was led away, Horatio called Ryan.

"Mr. Wolfe, we are in the clear. No worries," Horatio said.

"It's over? It's really over this time?" Ryan asked.

"It is really over," Horatio said. "See you tomorrow, Ryan."

"See you tomorrow, H". Ryan said. He turned to Calleigh, who had stopped by on her lunch break to see how Ryan was doing. "It's over. It's finally over." Tears brimmed his green eyes, but this time they were tears of joy and relief. Calleigh wrapped her arms around his neck and held his head against her shoulder.

"I'm so glad," Calleigh said. "What should we do to celebrate?"

Ryan lifted his head from Calleigh's shoulder. "I have an idea," he said, kissing her passionately. "Ryan, I have to go back to work," Calleigh protested.

"You've done enough work for the day, now I want to show you my appreciation," Ryan said. He resumed kissing her passionately. She ran her fingers along his neck down to the small area of his chest revealed by the opening of his shirt. She let her fingers linger there, drawing circles as he kissed her. He reached up and undid the buttons of his shirt, and they both gasped as he slid her hand inside to rest against his skin. She peeled his shirt from his shoulders, gazing into his green eyes. She noticed some apprehension and hesitation.

"Are you okay? Are you sure you want to do this?" she asked.

"Never more sure in my life," Ryan whispered, kissing her. She laid back on the couch, allowing him to show her his appreciation, and reveling in the chance to do the same.


	3. Chapter 3

Title: Deadly Desire, chapter 3

Disclaimer: The character of Defense Attorney Amos Rodriguez is my own, all the rest are the property of the CBS and CSI: Miami.

Calleigh Duquesne was testifying concerning the evidence she had collected against Erica Sikes and her assault and extortion attempt on Ryan. When the state's attorney had finished his line of questioning, Erica's defense lawyer, Amos Rodriguez, presented his questions.

"Miss Duquesne, you stated that a swab was collected from the alleged victim which contained lipstick and saliva, which DNA results concluded belonged to my client, Miss Sikes. That must have been a rather sensitive piece of evidence to collect, Miss Duqesne. Did you collect that piece of evidence yourself or have a male colleague do it for you?"

Calleigh and Ryan both shifted in their seats as Calleigh prepared to answer. "I did not collect the sample. I handed a swab to Mr. Wolfe and instructed him to collect the sample. I told him to go into the bathroom and leave the door open so he could be observed by the male officer standing nearby," Calleigh stated.

"And did that officer observe the collection of the sample?" Rodriguez asked.

"I cannot testify to that. I was securing other pieces of evidence and packing up my kit at the time," Calleigh answered.

"During your investigation of the crime scene, did you note whether Miss Sikes keeps her cosmetics in the restroom?" Rodriguez asked.

"Yes I did," Calleigh answered.

"And it is likely to assume that a lipstick may contain some traces of saliva on it?" Rodriguez continued.

"It's possible, but..."

"So if the collection of the sample was not done by you, nor observed by you, and since you cannot verify that it was observed by the male officer, how do we know that Mr. Wolfe didn't just swab one of Miss Sikes' lipsticks?" Rodriguez asked.

"Because I trust my colleague. Mr. Wolfe wouldn't do that," Calleigh asnwered firmly.

"Under normal circumstances, perhaps. But say Mr. Wolfe was in a situation that didn't exactly go his way. Perhaps he was a little ashamed of how the previous evening's activities played out. Mr. Wolfe has a bit of a temper, does he not, Miss Duquesne? Don't you think he could be capable of planting evidence against my client to exact a little revenge of his own?" Rodriguez pressed.

Calleigh looked desperately at Ryan, not wanting to betray him. Thankfully she was saved by the state's attorney.

"Objection. Calls for speculation," the state's attorney said.

"Withdrawn. Miss Duquesne, is it true that you and Mr. Wolfe are in a dating relationship?" Rodriguez continued.

Ryan closed his eyes and lowered his head. Calleigh considered her answer carefully.

"We've been on a couple dates, yes."

"Before or after the alleged incident with my client?" Rodriguez pressed.

"After," Calleigh answered flatly.

"So you testify that prior to this alleged incident, your relationship with Mr. Wolfe was strictly professional?" Rodriguez continued.

"Yes," Calleigh stated.

"Is it not true that prior to Mr. Wolfe entering the restroom to supposedly collect the trace sample that you touched him on the cheek?" Rodriguez asked.

Calleigh thought for a moment. "I may have touched him in order to show support, he was traumatized and humiliated."

"Is it not also true that you were with Mr. Wolfe the night that he received the DVD and photos you maintain were sent by an associate of my client?" Rodriguez continued.

"Yes," Calleigh answered.

"How are we to know that those items weren't planted by you or Mr. Wolfe?" Rodriguez asked.

Ryan stood up, infuriated. "This is ridiculous! That envelope was in my mailbox! There's no way that was planted!"

"Mr. Wolfe, I will ask you to take your seat and be quiet, or else you will be found in contempt of court," Judge Joseph Ratner said. "Miss Duquesne, please answer the question."

Calleigh looked at Ryan sympathetically. "There were fingerprints on the envelope, the photos, and the DVD that belonged to Toby Hansen, Erica Sikes' cameraman."

"But there were no eyewitnesses that saw him placing the envelope into Mr. Wolfe's mailbox, were there?" Rodriguez continued.

"Objection. Calls for speculation," the state's attorney said.

"Overruled. You may answer the question, Miss Duquesne," Judge Ratner said.

"I cannot testify to that," Calleigh said gravely.

"Your honor, it is clear to me and to this court that this evidence against my client has been compromised. The trace sample clearly was improperly collected. And Miss Duquesne's lack of professionalism during the investigation casts serious doubts on the integrity of the remainder of the evidence collected. Furthermore, there is insufficient evidence that a crime was even committed. Therefore I move that all charges against my client be dropped," Rodriguez stated. Ryan nearly jumped out of his seat again, but was stopped by the state's attorney.

"Motion granted. The charges against Miss Sikes are dropped," Judge Ratner stated.

Ryan sat in stunned silence as the courtroom began to clear. Calleigh stepped down from the witness stand and sat down beside Ryan, taking his hand in hers. "I failed you," she whispered, tears rolling down her face.

"You tried to protect me, Calleigh," Ryan said tenderly.

"And I failed. Now she's free. I promised she would never hurt you again, and now she walks," Calleigh said tearfully.

"You did what you could under the circumstances. How could you know what would happen between us would overshadow things? It doesn't change the truth. It doesn't change what she did to me, to us. She might walk now, but it will come back to bite her in the end," Ryan said.

"How can you be so sure? She might attempt something worse now, if there could possibly be anything worse up her sleeve," Calleigh said, touching his face.

"But I'll be ready for her this time. We both will," he said, kissing her hand. "I'll get a restraining order, whatever it takes, to keep her away from me, from us. She's not going to win. She's not..." Ryan broke off, bursting into tears. Calleigh took him in her arms and held him tight.

"I'm so sorry, Ryan. I'm so sorry I failed you," Calleigh cried.

"You didn't, Calleigh. You're still here. You're still here," Ryan whispered tightly, sheltering and being sheltered by the woman he loved.


	4. Chapter 4 final chapter

Title: Deadly Desire, chapter 4

Disclaimer: The character of Annabelle Larson is my creation, the rest are the property of the writers of CBS and CSI: Miami

Weeks went past with nary a peep from Erica Sikes. Ryan was able to get a restraining order against her, preventing her from being less than fifty feet from him, his home, and his place of employment. The other CSI's knew this, so when they needed to speak to the press, they would organize them far enough from the building to accomodate their needs and Ryan's safety. Occasionally Ryan would see her outside the building and it would cause him to shudder, but so far she was keeping her distance.

That was until the day Calleigh disappeared. Calleigh and Ryan had spent a romantic evening together at her place, and spent the night in each other's arms. It was the first peaceful sleep he had known since the incident, and he felt safe and secure with Calleigh near him. He awoke the next morning in Calleigh's bed alone. Immediately an uneasy feeling came over him. The last time he had awoken alone in a bed other than his own he was in big trouble. He called out to her, no answer. He went downstairs, hoping she was in the kitchen enjoying a cup of coffee. She wasn't there. He noticed the front door was opened and the newspaper was lying on the front doorstep. Then he saw a note taped to the front door, it read: _"If you wish to see Calleigh Duquesne alive again, you will return all copies of the DVD to me. Wait for further instructions. Do not contact the police or your colleagues or Miss Duquesne will pay."_

Ryan knew better than to go without at least calling Horatio. "H, it's Wolfe. Calleigh's been kidnapped. I'm at her place now. There's a ransom note on her front door. They must have snatched her when she went out for the paper," Ryan said frantically.

"Alright, Wolfe. Stay put, stay calm, don't touch anything. We'll be right there," Horatio said firmly.

Ryan hung up the phone, then went back upstairs to get dressed. He was sitting on the front steps when Horatio and Delko arrived. Delko removed the ransom note from the door and showed it to Horatio.

"They want the DVD, H. I'll dust this letter for prints," Delko said.

"Ryan, did you touch that letter?" Horatio asked.

"No, I didn't touch anything, just like you said. I just went back upstairs, got dressed, and came and sat out here. Figured that would be best until you got here,' Ryan said.

"Good work, Wolfe. Now, we've got to come up with a plan to get Calleigh back, but it may involved putting you at some risk. Are you up for that Ryan?" Horatio asked.

"Anything to get Calleigh back safe and sound, H," Ryan said.

"Alright. Here's the plan. They're not going to get their DVD, we're not going to give Miss Sikes the opportunity to humiliate yo further, you understand me?"

"But if we don't give her the disk, she'll kill Calleigh," Ryan interjected.

"We'll give her a blank disk. You demand to see Calleigh. When you're sure Calleigh's safe you hand over the disk and you get out of there," Horatio explained.

"What if she demands to see the disk first, to check it out to make sure it's the real thing?" Ryan asked, unsure that this plan would work.

"We'll have you on a wire. If she views the disk and sees it's a fake, you give us the cue and we'll go in. Plain and simple," Horatio said.

"Let's hope it works," Ryan said, wanting to trust his boss.

Ryan received instructions on his cell phone to bring the DVD to Erica Sikes' home. Horatio and Delko were positioned along with several police officers nearby and out of sight. Ryan rang the doorbell. The door opened and Ryan was grabbed and pulled inside at gunpoint by Toby Hansen.

"Welcome sweetheart, it's such a pleasure to see you again," Erica smiled.

"Wish I could say the same," Ryan said flatly.

"Did you bring me a present?" Erica asked greedily.

"You don't get it until I see Calleigh," Ryan demanded. Erica gave Toby a look, who then placed his gun at Ryan's temple.

"Take the disk, Annabelle," Erica said to her secretary. Annabelle took the disk from Ryan and handed it to Erica. "That was easy. Let's see what we have here." Erica placed the DVD into her DVD player, and discovered that the disk was blank. "What do you play me for Wolfe? Substituting a blank disk for the DVD I asked for? Well, we may just have to make another one, won't we?"

Before Ryan could give the cue for Horatio and his crew to swoop down, Erica ripped open Ryan's shirt, exposing the wire. "Well, well, well," Erica smirked. "What do we have here? An uninvited guest I see. Sorry Lieutenant Caine, this is a private show." Erica ripped the wire off of Ryan and destroyed it. "Take him downstairs," she told Toby.

"Where are you taking me?" Ryan demanded.

Erica gave Toby a nod, and he pistol-whipped Ryan. "You wanted to see your precious Calleigh, didn't you?" She turned to Annabelle. "Stay up here and keep watch."

As Ryan was forcibly taken downstairs, his cellphone fell to the floor. Once Erica, Toby, and Ryan had disappeared from sight, Annabelle picked up Ryan's phone and looked up Horatio's number.

Erica led the way as Toby dragged a semi-conscious Ryan down through Erica's basement to a hidden wine cellar. Calleigh was tied to a chair. Toby held Ryan's arms behind his back as Erica removed what was left of his shirt and his belt. She used his belt to tie Ryan's hands in front of him, and Toby hoisted Ryan up so that he hung by his tied hands from a hook suspended from the ceiling, his toes barely touching the floor. Erica threw a glass of cold water in Ryan's face to wake him up. Through blearly eyes he saw Calleigh, and was thankful she was safe, at least for the moment. He also saw there was a video camera set up.

"Erica, whatever you're thinking of doing, don't waste your time. Horatio and the others will be here any second," Ryan stammered.

"Don't worry, I have a lookout posted. The minute I hear they're on their way, you and Blondie over there will be dead.. So, what is it that Horatio is so fond of saying, no worries?' Erica sneered.

She stepped towards Ryan, who tried desperately to move away from her, but couldn't get his footing, suspended in the air as he was. Erica giggled at his lame attempt to move away.

"There's nowhere for you to go, precious. No escape this time," she smiled, kissing his stomach as she unfastened his pants.

"Erica, please, don't do this. Wasn't once enough? " Ryan cried desperately.

"Oh, no. Once is never enough, love. Besides, now we have twice the fun. This time Calleigh gets to watch. And once you and I are done having fun, we can let Calleigh and Toby have a go at it," she sneered looking at Calleigh. "How does that sound?"

"Over my dead body! Don't you dare touch her!" Ryan shouted.

"That could be arranged, although, it would be such a waste," Erica said as she removed the rest of Ryan's clothing. "Are you sure you wouldn't want a piece of this, Calleigh? It's sooo sweet," Erica sneered menacingly.

"Forcing myself on a man and videotaping it isn't quite my style," Calleigh said flatly.

"I'm not much in the mood to share anyways," Erica said. She grabbed a roll of duct tape, ripped off a piece and plastered it over Calleigh's mouth. "That will keep you quiet while I work." She turned to Ryan, ripping off another piece. "As for you, love, when will you learn that I don't take no for an answer?"

Ryan protested but his pleas were muffled by the duct tape that sealed his lips. Erica motioned to Toby to turn on the video camera. She repeated her assault on Ryan while Calleigh was forced to watch, Toby's gun pointed at her head. Without the benefit of drugs to knock him out he felt every sleazy move Erica made. Tears of shame poured from his eyes as his body betrayed him. Calleigh didn't want to watch, yet she didn't want to emotionally check out on Ryan, to make him feel more abandoned than he already was in that moment. So she looked directly into his eyes, her tears of sorrow matching his as she was forced to witness this horrible scene.

Erica's humiliation of Ryan was nearly complete when a loud crash was heard, followed by an influx of men in uniform. Ryan and Calleigh heard Horatio's voice crying "Miami Dade police! Cease and desist!" Erica stopped what she was doing, grabbed a knife from the table and held it to Ryan's throat. "Drop your weapon, Miss Sikes, and call off your henchman. You're outnumbered," Horatio threatened.

"Call off your goons, or you'll lose two CSIs, and it won't be pretty," Erica retorted.

"Erica, you don't want to do this," Horatio cautioned, inching closer to her, gun poised. Delko had his gun trained on Toby, who still had Calleigh at gunpoint. "You're finished Erica, let them go.," Horatio said, grabbing Erica's arm and wresting the knife away from her. Delko and another officer subdued Toby and freed Calleigh. Two officers led Erica away while Horatio freed Ryan. Ryan sank to the ground, trying to cover himself. Calleigh wanted to comfort him. She looked at Horatio, and he nodded. Calleigh knelt down and briefly embraced Ryan, holding his head to her shoulder as he cried.

"Are you okay?" Ryan asked

Calleigh couldn't believe he was asking her if she was okay. "I'm fine, Ryan. I'm fine."

"Ma'am, I'm going to ask you to accompany this officer, and Delko will process you outside while I process Ryan," Horatio said. Calleigh nodded and stood up to leave. Ryan grabbed onto her hand, not wanting her to go.

"Ryan, we want to do this right this time, Calleigh can't stay," Horatio said. His words stung her, but she knew they were meant more to assure Ryan than to scold her. Calleigh squeezed Ryan's hand and then went outside. Horatio collected the samples he needed from Ryan and let him get dressed. The DVD and the camera were taken as well. "We've got her this time, Ryan. I'm sorry it had to come to this, but we got her." Ryan said nothing. He just walked past Horatio and out to find Calleigh.

Ryan took Calleigh back to her place. He took a shower, attempting to wash away what had happened, and then lay on the couch with his head in Calleigh's lap. He dozed as she stroked his hair, his face, that little spot on his chest that she loved to see peeking from his shirt. She still couldn't believe what all her angel had been through, this sweet gentle man who worked so hard to do good and protect others. She blamed herself for failing to protect him. She began to cry, and her sobs roused Ryan from his sleep. He reached up and touched her cheek.

"This isn't your fault," he whispered.

"Yes it is," she sobbed. "If I hadn't screwed up the first investigation against her she wouldn't have had the chance to do this to you again."

"You were looking out for me," Ryan said.

"And I ended up hurting you even worse than before," Calleigh cried.

"Listen to me," Ryan said, sitting up and taking her hands in his. "You didn't do this to me. You didn't tie me up, hold a gun to my head or a knife to my throat. You didn't force yourself on me. You didn't seek to humilate me. Erica did, and she's going to pay."

"When I think of how much this has cost you..." she said, stroking his hair.

"It cost me a lot, I won't deny that. But that's not your fault. Had she succeeded in killing you, or doing to you what she did to me, that would have hurt me so much more. You're here and you're safe, that's all that matters to me now," Ryan said tearfully.

Calleigh kissed him tenderly, and Ryan pulled her into his arms to lay down beside him, to hold him tightly as he slept in her embrace.


End file.
